Friday, January 18, 2013

Chicken with Apricots : IHCC

"Dried Fruit" is our theme for this week at I Heart Cooking Clubs (IHCC), where we are currently cooking from Madhur Jaffrey's recipes. What's my favourite dried fruit? Apricots! I love apricots and have used it in some bakes, but never in a savoury dish before. So when I came across this recipe of MJ using apricots in a chicken dish, I knew that sooner or later, I'll be cooking it! And when IHCC selected dried fruits as this week's theme, I just knew exactly what I will be cooking.




According to MJ, this is a sweet and sour dish of the Parsi community in India, and is one of their culinary tradition. "This dish is generally served with a mountain of very fine, crisp potato straws but it may also be served with rice".  Well, I served it with rice, but I do not like this dish very much.


Firstly the apricots are boiled in some water for about 15 minutes to soften the fruits. The chicken pieces are marinated with some salt and lots of ground black pepper, then fry in a little oil with cinnamon sticks and cumin seeds, remove and keep aside. Saute the sliced onions until lightly brown, add the ginger, tomato puree, and all the chicken pieces. Some water and salt is added, cover and simmer for about 15 minutes, and add the garam masala, cayenne pepper and the apricots. Now the recipe calls for some sugar and red wine vinegar. I tasted the dish before I added in these two ingredients, and it was good. I thought of omitting the sugar and red wine vinegar, but then this is really a sweet and sour dish, so I followed the recipe and added these two ingredients in. However, I only used half a teaspoon of sugar (original is 1-1/2 tablespoons), as I do not like very sweet dishes, especially curries! And the apricots do have its own sweetness too. I added in only 1 tablespoon of red wine vinegar (original is 2 tablespoons). And after the addition of these two ingredients, I tasted the dish again, and I did not like it! The taste is sweet and sour, just as MJ describes, but to me somehow, the addition of sugar and red wine vinegar does not blend well with this dish. Maybe it is just me, but if I happen to cook this dish again, it will be without the sugar and red wine vinegar, as I prefer this dish BEFORE these two ingredients are added in.





My son thinks this is OK, maybe he wants to make me feel better, seeing how disappointed I am with this dish. The hubby thinks that it is a little sweet. Overall review : There's nothing wrong with this dish, just that it is not my cup of tea, or my family's. But if you like sweet and sour dishes, then this might be for you, as I have read good reviews about this dish when I googled for it. This may not be my cup of tea, but it could be yours!


Please stop by I Heart Cooking Clubs (IHCC) to view the other yummies that my friends are sharing.


IHeartCookingClubsMadhurJaffrey


For the full recipe, you may get it here Curry Nation, Madhur Jaffrey



18 comments:

  1. Well it looks good! you can't win them all - although I love the idea of chicken and apricots!
    Mary x

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  2. Hi Joyce! This is an interesting combination...

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  3. I do love apricots, but I've never thought of pairing them with chicken. Thank you for sharing your experience! This post, along with my cup of hot chocolate, is making for a very lovely Thursday morning. Have a great weekend!

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  4. Yeah, I'd leave the red wine and sugar, too, and maybe add beer just to see the contrast with the chicken and the fruit.

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  5. Looks delicious though, just like chicken kurma....I prefer less sweetness for savory dishes too!

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  6. Fruit in dish, gravy looks like curry, yummy!

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  7. Eileen, Hundred Eighty DegreesFriday, January 18, 2013

    I like to eat apricot as a snack, but never ever cross my mind to use in savoury dish. Sweet savoury dish is also not my cup of tea either :) nice attempt.

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  8. Joyce, I thought it was strange to add sugar and red wine vinegar to the curry. I guess it is a matter of taste. At least you tried and found out!

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  9. Actually I think I would find it too sweet as well... I am really not sure about using apricots in a savoury dish...

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  10. maybe add some tamarind paste could be better! then name it as chicken assam curry apricots..!

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  11. I love sweet and sour dish but with apricots ?! Not really sure :D Though your dish looks really appetizing . Your little taste tester is so nice ;D

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  12. hi Joyce, this is something i never hear before, chicken with apricots
    i like sweet and sour though, but i think its the red wine vinegar
    well, i too often try new dish / bake that i don't really enjoy :)

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  13. Just drooling over the pics ...looks yum

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  14. ... think my comment was just lost in the ether, so I'll try again ...
    This book arrived this week and I spotted this recipe right away. (I've also used a whole package of stickies marking recipes to try!) Glad to see you've made this. Keeping your comments in mind, I'll lower my expectations when I make it. I especially like dried apricots since they have a bit of a sweet/sour taste themselves.

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  15. What a sweet twist to simple chicken!

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  16. Dried apricots are a favorite of mine, as well. I tend to agree with you when it comes to adding in sugar and red wine to savory types of dishes. I guess it's all personal preference, right?

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